1901
Significant events March *23: Hassan Noroalah, one of the legitimate "Terrible Turks," easily defeats rookie wrestler Charles McWeeney in New York City. May *7: Tom Jenkins defeats Hassan Noroalah in New York in one of the latter matches of the latter's North American tour. The 345-pound Noroalah is disqualified when he throws the 200-pound Jenkins out of the ring and into the third row of fans. *25: A New York bout between Ernest Roeber and Hassan Noroalah provokes a small riot in Madison Square Garden due to the eccentricities of Noroalah, who, according to the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, is disqualified for applying holds below the waist in this Greco Roman bout and "sitting on his opponent's face." In the ensuing pandemonium, Noroalah is clubbed by an overzealous baton-wielding policeman. July *24: Ole Marsh directs a challenge towards a wrestler billing himself as Frank Kennedy in Dawson City, Yukon. The match, won by Marsh, was one of the few professional losses of a wrestler who was far better known in the U.S. as Frank Gotch. As Marsh was also Kennedy's manager for the Yukon tour and was also posing under an alias (his real name was Joe Carroll), the match was likely fixed. September *25: Frank Kennedy (aka Frank Gotch) loses via disqualification to boxer Frank Slavin in the second round of a mixed match. The DQ came when a dazed Kennedy rushed at Slavin and threw him over the top rope and through a ringside table. *Late September: Frank Gotch prepares to board the passenger ship Skagway following a successful Yukon tour that saw him win approximately $30,000 worth of prospector's gold. He is detained for a round of drinks by Joe Carroll, and misses his embarkment as a result. The Skagway later sinks with all hands several miles up the Yukon River. There were no survivors. Gotch lost a suitcase of clothing in the tragedy, but retains his life. Births June *21 - Ali Baba Debuts *Early 1901: Charles McWeeney, probably the first football player ever to transition to the wrestling ring (he played as right guard for the Chicago Athletic Club), makes his pro debut. Although one of McWeeney's first wins was over noted heavyweight Ernest Roeber, he was often described as lacking in the papers, and never enjoyed any real success as a wrestler. *Mian Ghulam Muhammad, a native of the Punjab, makes his pro debut in India. Later known as Gama the Great, Muhammad would go down in history as the most famous Indian wrestler of all-time. Title changes March *Frank Gotch defeated Al Wassem in Burlington, Iowa to win the NWA Iowa Heavyweight Championship. May *3: Tom Cannon defeats Antonio Pierre in London to win the vacant European Greco Roman title. June *Harvey Parker claims the world welterweight title. July *5: Tom Jenkins, billed as the American catch-as-catch-can champion, defeats Ernest Roeber, billed as the American Greco Roman champion, in St Louis, MO. Although by no means official, Jenkins bills himself as the American champion following this win. *29: American Freestyle champion Dan McLeod defeats Ed Atherton in Buffalo, New York to win the world middleweight title. November *7: Tom Jenkins defeats Dan McLeod in Cleveland, Ohio to become the official American Freestyle champion of record. Category:Wrestling Years